Family Trip to Las Vegas

Goals of Trip:

• Eat great food

• Spend time with family

Keywords: Intergenerational, Xiao Long Bao

Time visited: October/Fall

Don't forget to pack:

• Sunscreen

• Lactaid

Travel:

The great thing about Vegas is that most places have a direct flight to this popular tourism destination. We chose to rent a car since we were staying off-strip for the majority of the trip, and parking on the strip is positively a deal ($20 to park at Paris Las Vegas). In comparison to parking prices in Nashville or even Memphis this was not prohibitively expensive. Rideshare services are abundant here! There’s always a driver within range.

Day 1 - Saturday

We arrived at Harry Reid International Airport in the afternoon, and leisurely picked up the rental car before checkin in at The Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino. Wandering through the bright lights and synchronous chimes and chirps of the casino to check in at the desk is an utterly surreal experience.

After freshening up and enjoying the views from our hotel room, we made a dinner reservation at Kumi Sushi Restaurant located inside the Mandalay Bay. We didn't feel like driving far or walking down strip, just wanted to get straight into it - and this is a choice that we did not regret.  

Saturday was our night for just the two of us - whenever we are doing family or group travel, my partner and I intentionally build in at least one day or mealtime for dedicated date time. We wanted a luxury feel, to be able to hear each other speak, and we wanted sushi. Kumi hit all of these points! The salmon sashimi was fatty and succulent and the shishito peppers were savory-spicy.

Afterwards, we explored by taking the tram to New York New York in pursuit of the elusive Hello Kitty Pop Up Café. New York New York is a dizzying space- if there's a theme, this casino has it. Hershey's, Hello Kitty, Italian restaurants, Pubs, fish and chips… it's a bold mashup.

After tracking down the elusive Hello Kitty Pop-Up Café, we headed back through the Luxor and admired its baffling architecture.

On our way back to Mandalay Bay, we found a Kung Fu Tea and sipped on our preferred boba orders (30% sweet, less ice, taro flavor with regular boba) for dessert. 

From there we called it a night. We slept deeply but kept the drapes open to enjoy the city lights winking at us.

Day 2 - Sunday

We woke up bright and early to pick up family members from the airport, then meandered to Tiabi Coffee and Waffle bar for a breakfast snack of a waffle baby and lattes. Tiabi’s tiny waffle sandwich with sausage was a warm and savory way to tide us over before our big dim sum lunch.

Next, we headed across the street to Daiso, a fun yet practical Japanese store. Daiso is jam packed with cute items, from random miniatures and fluffy stuffed animals to kitchen gadgets and Japanese snacks. I was captivated by the stationery and office supplies section, and we purchased a hello kitty pill case, onigiri-maker, house slippers, Japanese jelly drink, and notebooks.

Dim Sum lunch at Yum Cha

This was an excellent place for our large family group of 10 to dine together in a relaxed environment. From har gow, shu mai, crispy hong kong noodles, candy cane shrimp, salt and pepper tofu, salt and pepper chicken, to sauteed green beans - we devoured it all! As always, a pot of jasmine tea for the table is non-negotiable and we didn’t leave before finishing out this dim sum feast with egg tarts (creamy, flaky, delicate but rich), and the salted egg yolk pastry.

We wanted to go to Seafood City or a similar market to burn time before checking into our VRBO, and the local branch of our family recommended Greenland Supermarket. The market has a food court (with a boba place!) before you enter the grocery area itself. There is also a bakery offering a wide range of fresh, delicious goods. After wandering and perusing the aisles, we purchased a pack of Pocari Sweat (japanese sports drink), chocolate turtle chips, and garlic shrimp chips. Gotta have travel snacks!

Afterwards, we checked into our VRBO - and this was a masterful choice on my dad's part of the planning. Even though it might have been logistically simpler for us to stay in hotel rooms on the strip, staying in a large home together allowed our rambling family group to have communal spaces, plenty of bathrooms, and enjoy time together comfortably. Drinking tea and coffee in the mornings poolside while enjoying the crisp desert mornings was a 5-star experience.

The most immediate bonus to this family-centered plan was the pool table. We enjoyed dramatic pool matches across the family for the entirety of the trip. The rental was located about 10 minutes off the strip, which was a good fit for us as there was a decent amount of off-strip attractions our group was interested in.

For dinner, we ventured out to a Mexican spot called Roberto's that was founded in Chula Vista, California where my family is from! I chose a light and crunchy dinner of rolled tacos, while my family devoured fresh-fried hard tacos, burritos, and carne asada fries. Sweet and smooth horchata washed it all down as my parents and uncle reminisced over shared memories of hanging out at this spot at all hours as teenagers.

Day 3 - Monday

Breakfast at Full House Filipino BBQ

My mother requested Filipino food (my family is Filipino and Chinese) at least once during the trip. I wasn't sure about this meal for a brunch/early lunch, but I've never been more happy to be wrong. Go for brunch, lunch, or dinner at Full House BBQ and you will NOT be disappointed.

I chose the breakfast silog plate with fried milkfish (Bangus) and pork longanisa (sausage). It was accompanied by two fried eggs, savory garlic fried rice, a salad, and a tiny container of vinegary dipping sauce. This was savory, filling, and fun! My partner scarfed down a tofu dish, and others opted for the sisig (crispy pork) and beef with bittermelon. I would absolutely come here again next time I am in Vegas. The cook, owner, staff all know what they're doing.

Café 86

If you're an Ube (or Taro) flavor fan, a stop at Café 86 is essential. This charming chain operates in Nevada and California, serving up rich and delicious Ube-flavored treats.

I opted for the oat milk ube latte accompanied by an ube truffle (moment of silence for its depth of flavor) and split an ube crinkle cookie with my partner. One of our group got the halo halo which was decadently covered in pieces of flan and jellies.

Gordon Ramsay Steak

My brother and his wife are mega fans, so at least 1 Gordon restaurant was going to be on the docket. We headed over to Paris Las Vegas and perused the casino before checking in for our reservation. If you're also a Gordon fan, be sure to make a reservation for your preferred restaurants! We witnessed people getting turned away at the hostess stand, so reservations and planning is necessary.

I'm typically a $ or $$ range person when it comes to dining… this restaurant was one of the most upscale places I have ever been. I would place it in the $$$$ category. The staff will place napkins in your lap for you if you let them (this gave me a jump scare).

Entering through the grand "London tube" entrance did feel like being transported. The restaurant feels completely secluded from the casino, which felt luxurious.

I ordered a dirty gin martini and an American Wagyu filet (I prefer leaner cuts of meat) with a side of brussels sprouts. The wagyu was tender, flavorful, and cooked perfectly medium rare. We all tried a small bite of foie gras and most of the party was not enthralled by the texture.

It ended up being a wise choice that we only ordered 2 sides for our party of 6, because the sides were generously portioned. We split the brussels sprouts and asparagus between us, and each person had their own entrée. Both the asparagus and the brussels sprouts were individually gigantic, but they were cooked well.

After the dinner, two of our party headed to the Sphere for the V-U2 show and the remainder took a stroll around the Venetian, taking time to goggle at the canals and fake sky surrounded by luxury stores.

At this point we purchased blended alcoholic drinks from Fat Tuesday, which I recommend. Fat Tuesdays are located on every corner, so it's easy to find one when the fancy strikes. The blended drinks come with alcohol pre-mixed into them, so if you're more of a light weight drinker, don't feel pressured to get the extra shot of liquor. The pina colada flavor was light and refreshing, not too sweet.

After seeing our fill at the Venetian, we took a rideshare back to the VRBO for a few more frenzied games of pool before heading to bed.

Day 4 - Tuesday

Also known as Din Tai Fung day, this was the main item on the agenda. We spent the morning lounging with coffee and talking before heading over to Aria Las Vegas to dine at our favorite, Din Tai Fung!

Famed for its tender and gently savory soup dumplings (Xiao Long Bao), this chain is growing but still not located near us in the southeast. That's fine, I simply choose to design my travel around Din Tai Fung locations.

We devoured the cucumber salad, woodear mushroom salad, spicy wontons, multiple orders of xiao long bao, and potstickers. The xiao long bao have such a tender and gentle savory flavor.

The care and dedication they put into their wrappers and fillings pays off, with the delicate wrapper yielding to soupy goodness! Their dessert xiao long bao was the star of the show, with savory black sesame dumplings dunked in decadent salted cream or chocolate dumplings covered in the same. We left here feeling extremely satisfied!

My parents departed to visit the famed Welcome to Las Vegas sign and the rest of the group went over to the Patisserie. We were motivated by a mere glance at a matcha beignet.

Afterwards, we walked through the Aria and over to Caesar's palace and Hell's Kitchen, enjoying the breezes and shade when crossing between casinos. We marveled at the extravagant crystal shopping mall then took a stroll through the Bellagio. At The Bellagio, we viewed the world's largest chocolate fountain, the ethereal conservatory, and the Chihuly glass ceiling.

The conservatory is decorated seasonally, so the décor at this time was PUMPKINS! Pumpkins everywhere, tempered by a fantastical fairytale theme.

After working up an appetite from stair climbing, tram riding, and exploring, we decided to go for sushi.

AYCE Sushi at Smile Shota

Following my local family members' recommendation, we made the trek to Smile Shota. It was a 20 minute drive from the strip, but our group was adamant that we get sushi for our next meal and on board for a journey to make that a reality.

Smile Shota is located in a food court, nestled beside a self-serve ramen place, fried chicken joint, and a taiyaki spot.

We chose the All You Can Eat option, which was extremely generous. It did feature a penalization for wasted food, but we were conscientious in our ordering choices. The portions of fish were large, service was quick, and the ngiri were not overstuffed with rice!

The quality of the fish was excellent and the specialty items were impressive, including sea urchin (uni).

The options were limitless, you could order ramen, a hand roll, fried rolls, ngiri, and so much more. The salmon belly and the uni were my favorites from this spot, with the ikura and tobiko as close runner ups. 

I would absolutely return here, and when I do, I won't eat the dessert. I'll save my dessert for going to the taiyaki (custard filled pastry) stand in the food court. Overall, we were satisfied and it was a great value for the price as well.

This was a wonderful spot to close out our trip, as we headed out the next morning to journey back to the eastern time zone.